Always the Last to Know
by BeachBum84
Summary: Mrs. Hayfer’s actually being nice to Drake; that can’t be good. He’s always the last one to know.


**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

* * *

"So then, Lily dumped a bottle of water on Jillian and then Jillian pounced on Lily. It was a total catfight. I mean, dude, it was totally awesome!" Drake was happily telling Josh when they entered the house.

"Drake, did you say something?" Audrey called out from the kitchen.

Drake peeked into the kitchen. "No, I was just telling Josh about this catfight I witnessed at school." He turned to look at Josh but discovered he wasn't right behind him anymore. "Anyway, it was awesome," he said as he grabbed two Mocha Colas from the fridge. When he closed the fridge he saw that his mom looked upset. "Mom, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, sweetie," she said, her voice a little strained.

"Mom, I'm home!" Megan called out when she entered the house. She paused in the kitchen doorway when she saw her mom's face. "What happened?" she asked, though she threw a slightly accusatory glare in Drake's direction.

Audrey took a deep breath before talking. "It's nothing. Drake, why don't you go upstairs and...?" Her voice trailed off.

Drake was really confused now, but he wrote it off as female hormones. He rushed up the stairs and thought he heard Megan say, "It's been over a month."

"Dude, what happened a month ago?" Drake asked, sitting the extra can of soda on Josh's desk. "You know," he continued when he didn't get a response, "everyone has been acting really weird lately."

Josh looked ready to say something but Drake's eyes caught the clock. "Shit, I'm late for practice again. I'll see you later," he said before running out of the room.

--  
Drake was wandering the hallways instead of going to English class. Mrs. Hayfer was being unnaturally nice towards him and it was really starting to weird him out. Besides, he could always get the notes from Josh later.

He turned the corner and collided with someone. "I'm sorry," he said, reaching down to help the girl up. He was surprised to see it was Mindy, and even more surprising were her red eyes and the tears streaming down her face.

"I'm sorry..." she said, rubbing her hand over her eyes. "I didn't see you there."

"Don't worry about it." Drake helped her up. "What's wrong?"

"It's just..." She started sobbing.

"Whoa, whoa, don't cry." That didn't work. "Why don't we go for a walk?" Drake suggested.

Mindy nodded and Drake led her towards one of the empty classrooms. He didn't want someone to come out into the hallway to see what all the noise was about.

"I'm sorry," Mindy said when Drake closed the door. "I shouldn't be bothering you with this."

"No, it's okay." He didn't dislike her so much that he would leave her alone in this state.

"I just..." Mindy started pacing. "It feels like the world's falling apart. I can't seem to hold myself together. I just want time to stop... I want it to go backwards." She sighed and stopped pacing. "I just want it to stop hurting so badly." She looked at Drake. "I'm sorry. You're the last person I should be talking to about this!"

"Why? I mean, we all have days when we wish we could go back in time, right?"

Drake wasn't sure exactly what was going on. He just knew Mindy's body was pressed against his and her kiss felt desperate as if he was the only thing keeping her grounded.

He put his hands on Mindy's shoulders and gently pushed her away. "Hold on!" he said, "Josh is my brother. What if he sees us?" He glanced around nervously, afraid Josh had already caught them.

Mindy held her hands to her mouth and let out a strangled sob. "Drake... it's been two months."

Drake didn't see how that mattered. He knew Josh would never forgive him for going out with his ex-girlfriend. "I'm sorry," he said before rushing out of the classroom.

--  
"Drake, I think we need to talk," Walter said.

"Sorry, I'm already late." Drake stopped when he saw Walter's confused look. "It's bad movie Tuesday. Josh is probably waiting for me." Drake ran out the door. He was starting to get annoyed by the way Walter talked to him. As if he was some five-year-old who needed things explained to him.

He checked his watch. He was only a few minutes late when he ran into the theaters. He didn't see Josh in the lobby so he figured Josh had gotten everything and was saving him a seat.

"Can I see your ticket, please?" one of the new employees asked Drake at the theater door.

"Don't worry about it. My brother works here," Drake said, as if it was a perfect explanation.

"What's your brother's name?"

"Josh."

The new kid looked confused. "I don't know any..."

"It's okay, Kyle. He doesn't need a ticket," Helen said, coming over to them. She put her hand on Drake's shoulder as Kyle walked away. "How are you doing, Drake?"

Drake was confused by the look on Helen's face. There was something sad behind her smile. "I'm fine. I should get going. The movie's starting."

Helen cleared her throat and for a second Drake thought she was going to cry. She nodded. "Enjoy the movie."

The lights were already out and Drake felt a small panic when he couldn't find Josh. He thought back to all the weird looks he had been getting lately. It was like everyone knew something he didn't. His heart finally started beating again when he saw Josh sitting in the back row.

"Man, you wouldn't believe the new kid..." Drake said as he sat down. He glanced at Josh. "You didn't get the popcorn?"

Josh shrugged and opened his mouth to say something.

"Never mind," Drake said. "I'll go get some"

--  
"Drake!" Audrey screamed when Drake came home.

"I didn't do anything. I swear!" Drake replied. He was confused when Audrey attacked him with a hug.

"I'm so proud of you!" Audrey exclaimed.

"What? Why?"

"You got an A in History! In fact, all your grades are up. You have a B average in Math!" She waved the report card.

Drake scoffed. "Seriously, Mom? I got a B in Math? You must have my report card mixed up with Josh's." He didn't see Audrey's expression change as he ran up to his room.

"Congrats on the grade, man." Drake said as he threw himself on the couch. "Mom's freaking out because she got our report cards confused and thought _I_ got a B in Math."

Josh opened his mouth but he was interrupted when Megan stormed into the room and hit Drake.

"Ow! What the hell was that for?" Drake yelled, holding his injured arm.

"Mom is crying, you idiot!" Megan yelled.

"Why? It's not my fault she got them mixed up!"

"Why are you doing this?"

"What am I doing? You're the one barging into our room and hitting people for no reason!"

Megan laughed but there was no humor behind it. " 'Our room'? How long are you going to keep calling it that?"

Drake felt confusion replace the anger he was feeling. What else would he call it? He couldn't call it 'his' room.

"It's been four months, Drake," Megan said softly. "He's gone."

Drake shook his head. He turned to look at Josh but he wasn't there. He glanced around the room. Where did he go?

"Drake..."

"No..." Drake said, his voice sounding foreign to him. He looked around the room. There was an empty Mocha Cola can on Josh's desk. Their recycling bin was full of them. He couldn't have drank them all himself. Josh had to...

Megan put her hand gently on Drake's arm.

"No!" Drake yelled, pulling his arm away. He looked around the room again. Josh's bed was made and everything was in its place, just like it should be. Though, Drake's side of the room was abnormally clean as well. Josh must have...

Drake looked at Megan who had tears rolling down her cheeks. "No..." he said softly.

Megan nodded. "I think we need to go."

--  
Drake couldn't feel anything as he drove. Megan gently pointed out all the turns he needed to make. She held his hand when they walked down the paved path.

"I'll leave you alone," she said softly.

Drake sat down and stared at the stone. The ground was damp from the recent rain. Even though Drake felt uncomfortable feeling the moisture seeping through his jeans, he couldn't bring himself to move. Tears started rolling down his cheeks and he finally looked up at Josh who was standing nearby.

"Dude..." Drake said, his voice and heart breaking. "You died..."

Josh nodded sadly and walked closer. He glanced at the gravestone before looking at Drake again.

"Why didn't you tell me?" Drake asked. He almost laughed at the absurdity of the statement, but it turned into a sob instead.

Josh smiled sadly. "You weren't listening to me."

The sound of his voice made Drake realize just how long it's been since he'd heard it. Things were suddenly coming back to him. The phone call from the hospital, the wake, the funeral...

Josh sat down next to Drake. They sat in silence for a few minutes.

"Mindy must hate me..." Drake said realizing why Mindy was always so sad. She was in the car with Josh that night. She watched him...

"She'll forgive you. She forgets sometimes, too. Do you think you can help her? I mean, I know you two don't always get along but..."

"No problem." Drake sighed. "Mom and Walter... I don't know what they must be thinking about me. I'm lucky they haven't thrown me in the loony bin. I've been talking to dead people."

Josh chuckled. "Technically, only one dead person. Besides, you did well on your report card... Only you would excel at school while going crazy."

"In my defense... I thought it was you doing the homework." Drake realized he must still be fairly crazy to be having this conversation at all. He wanted so much to believe Josh was talking to him, but he just wasn't sure anymore. "Does it... hurt... where you are?"

Josh frowned. "It gets lonely sometimes, but it's not that bad."

Drake wiped the fresh tears away. He didn't want Josh to be dead. Why did Megan have to bring him here? He was doing just fine believing Josh was alive. This couldn't be happening.

"You'll be okay..." Josh said as if he was reading Drake's mind. "I have to go..."

There was such a finality to Josh's tone that Drake couldn't breathe. "Please, Josh, don't go!"

Josh smiled sadly. "Part of me will always be with you."

Drake stood up but it was too late. Josh was gone.

"Are you...?" Megan asked, cautiously approaching Drake.

"He's gone," Drake said sadly.

Megan nodded. "I know." She hugged Drake. "I know."


End file.
